


Hidden Within Neutrality

by DumbCane



Category: Metroid Series
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-02-21
Updated: 2021-02-21
Packaged: 2021-03-18 22:28:24
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,681
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29616384
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DumbCane/pseuds/DumbCane
Summary: She's on the run from the Federation, but she's hiding in plain sight.
Comments: 4
Kudos: 3





	Hidden Within Neutrality

Samus shuffled as she stared at her reflection.

It was different, to say the least. She had trimmed her hair unbelievably short, the tips barely brushing her shoulders, and dyed it a deep black. It contrasted her pale skin and rich blue eyes. Her blue eyes stood out. Speckled with green, they almost seemed like a newly forming nebula, or as if an artist had gently placed every emerald speck purposefully in a sea of water. While the federation had face and voice recognition tech, Samus was one of the few lucky humans in the galaxy. Few pictures of her exist, even within the Federation and her voice had gotten noticeably deeper and almost sweet (which oddly contrasted her occupation as a bounty hunter) since the last recording from when she was only fifteen. She had grown from the adult average 5 foot 8 inches at age fifteen to an Amazonian 6 foot 3 inches, and she had grown much more into an adult woman in the twelve or so years since she had to submit any health info the the Galactic Federation.

The ship tilted to the side, as Adam tried to locate an appropriate landing area, out of sight. Earth had been heavily developed, and any places that were tucked away and out of reach of the federation, were also out of reach of Samus. Samus rocked with the ship, unbothered by the movement, she was more interested in the clothing she was now analyzing. She had never been a woman who could throw an outfit together, and who could blame her. Wearing the power suit or zero suit were her main forms of clothing, in the rare few times she was out of her suits, she had civilian clothing given to her by the federation but she could not be seen on Earth in it. Each piece had an RF tag embedded in it, as ancient as RF tech was, it worked. Before the federation could have figured out what had happened to the BSL, she had closed her accounts and moved all credits to a credit chit under a new name and bought clothing. 

Before her on her bed laid a handful of dark sweaters, various colors of leggings, a few solid color shirts and button ups, and a few pairs of sneakers. 

Samus let out a hollow sigh.

"Adam, can you please send me details on Earth fashion for women."

"Right away, Samus."

Samus' mirror projected a holoscreen, she grimaced at the sight. 

Women in short sleeves or dresses, colorful patterns and clothing, multiple accessories, and make-up. Samus loosely hugged herself as she looked at the images, more and more scrolling past, all of a sudden, she had became aware of the scars that decorated her body. She could feel every flexing muscle in her body, as she tried to think of what to wear, and she was keenly aware of her amazonian height. If people believed Samus had no fears, no one had searched deep enough, as her breathing began to quicken looking at the images. Samus quickly pulled herself back, she ran a hand through her hair, nervous of what she could possibly fuck up. Even though she did have the enthusiastic sales clerk help her out, admittedly Samus became shy as she walked up to the other woman and squeaked the request out, she had seemingly lost all the information divulged to her as she looked at the clothing. 

Samus reluctantly picked up a black sweater, the woolen feel of the fabric in her hands almost foreign to her. Real wool was a luxury few could afford, while Samus could afford real wool, she had decided upon a synthetic wool. If Samus had a favorite feel, this would have to one of her favorites due to the soft and oddly sandy feel. Pulling the black sweater of her head, she could feel her body become warmer almost instantly, she had grown accustomed to the chilled interior of the ship. Heat was detectible. But, Samus would be willing to confide in a few people her preferences, and seh preferred higher temps over the blistering chill. 

The sales clerk had done a favor and disfavor for Samus. While most sweaters wouldn't be long enough to comfortably cover Samus' abdomen completely and Samus appreciated the length of the sweater's torso, going about mid-thigh, she heavily disliked the length of the sleeves. She turned and faced the mirror again, dismissing the holoscreen still scrolling through images of women, and Samus felt odd about the person staring back at her, a black sweater hanging off her shoulder and showing a bra strap, and obnoxiously long sleeves. Yet as she examined the person in the mirror, they were almost... cute? Samus shook her head quickly, as if she was trying to remind herself she was a violent weapon, not an adorably innocent-looking woman. 

Quickly pulling grey leggings on and a pair of red sneakers, Samus pulled up a calendar, in a few hours she would be having a tour of the apartment she would be renting, with another human already there. Samus wouldn't say she was a socially awkward person or an introvert, in the eyes of the Chozo, she was quite talkative and energetic. In the eyes of countless humans who had met her, they would have called her a living statue, she was soft spoken and a to the point person, almost matching her personality as a warrior. Samus could not respond to the courtship of countless men or the pressing and prying questions of other women when she was out of the suit, it was too much for the woman. Samus worried about her new roommate, hoping that they would keep conversations short and stay out of her way. Being attached to a person is deadly, and Samus did not want to worry about the safety of another person while she was hiding in plain sight. 

"Samus, you have an hour until your apartment tour."

Samus snapped out of her thoughts, grabbing ahold of a bag nearby and shoving clothes into it. It was odd to Samus, having to become a "regular" person while also weaseling around the Galactic Federation's home turf. What were regular people even like? Would she even be able to _fit_ in? That question made Samus feel odd, as if she were about to throw up her last meal.

"Adam, have you located a potential landing area?"

"No, I'll have to do a drop close to the city."

"How close?" Samus' palms were clammy, if what ruined this whole mission was her even starting, it would end terribly. She wanted to avoid being spotted by any Galactic Federation soldier, anti-aircraft turret, by anything that could kill or maim her really. 

"I can do a quick drop on the edge of the city, it is blocked by the terrain, yet I will have to relocate somewhere further and undetectable after offloading."

"Do it."

She quickly exited the small sleeping quarters, the federation didn't offer much in the way of luxury on a quick travel spacecraft, which Samus hadn't minded until the animals were aboard and sleeping in her bed as it was the only comfortable location on the ship, even if barely. She dropped her bag next to the pilot chair, almost flopping into the chair Samus took a deep breath. She wasn't afraid of dying or losing a limb, what terrified her the most _was_ the need to be "normal." Samus drove her hand into the bag, making sure her credit chit and aircraft caller were in her bag, luckily for her, they were. Samus had found herself becoming a little more emptyheaded with time, misplacing things occasionally. Samus pushed herself up and walked over to the lift pad, she was tensing up with excitement.

Adam landed the ship softly, behind a hill, Samus jumped off before the pad could even extend completely. Her bag beating against her legs as she dashed for shrubbery to hide in, as soon as Adam registered Samus was no longer on the lift pad, the ship took of. Pulling the aircraft caller out of the medium duffle bag, Samus watched as the indicator dashed across the screen, seemingly no hiccups in his flight pattern. She put the caller back in her bag, hiding in low in a shrub, watching the hill towards the city. When she felt assured no one would pop up, she cautiously crept from the shrub, quickly dashing for the base of the hill. She knew better than to walk over the peak of the hill, perfect for an ambush. The air was cool, Samus estimated it to be around 15C, a light breeze prickling her skin through the sweater. She walked for a few minutes, quickly reaching the outskirts of town. She was amazed by how rich the sky was, she felt a strange kinship to the natural surrounding around her. She pulled out her holopad, something she disparaged in the past as useless, but now it was vital to the mission. Pulling up maps, she input the location of her new quarters for the time being. 

She shuffled along streets and through crowds, she could almost _feel_ the eyes on her, analyzing her appearance and almost _judging_ her. Samus quickly tugged the loose edge over her exposed shoulder, while she was not a person dedicated to presentability, she became keenly aware of some hungry looks on her. She felt powerless as she made her way through this unknown environment. Her map pointed her along her path, she almost burst into a sprint as she became more and more uncomfortable.

She looked up at he plain building, simple, old era brick, colored a rich and earthy red. Pops of white concrete as the window sills and main door frame. Samus carefully stepped up the worn concrete steps, the steps people took decades, even centuries before her haunting the surface as it was curving down and up. Her hand was gently tracing the railing as she reached the door, foreboding for the towering woman. It was almost amazing that the door had no attempt at being stolen as it was clearly solid wood, another luxury most could not afford. Her hand wrapped around the cool copper nob, twisting and pushing the door in. Black and white tile greeted her feet, with the warm glow of yellow, perhaps orange, light above her face. Samus held a gasp as she looked at the wall, smooth and a warm shade beige. It was vastly different from the federation sleeping quarters of cool colors, harsh light, and completely metal focused design. In the building, the colors were rich and material mostly made of natural materials. 

Peering down, Samus almost panicked as she had a few minutes until the meeting. Dashing for the stairs, she rocketed herself up them, step by step pounding on smooth wood steps. Reaching the third floor, she pulled out her holopad, looking at the room number, 337. She carefully walked down the hallway, she felt threatened almost, despite her knowing no one would jump her. Reaching the room she hesitated to tap on the door, as she reached out the door flung open, making Samus jump back and instinctively reach for a forearm that was not there. The woman who opened the door had a large lopsided smile on her face. Samus quickly relaxed as the woman welcomed her in.

Hazel eyes and black, boxy glasses, Samus noted as she meekly laughed and walked in. The woman's skin was a light ochre color, warmth from the blood in the veins beneath her skin. She quickly closed the door behind Samus as she scurried away, running into a room over and giggling in total joy. Samus peered around the room, she felt warmth from the color palette, rich reds and yellows. A couch of a gold mustard, it matched the yellow sections on Samus' power suit, which Samus wished to be in to just feel protected. She stepped further into the room, almost jumping again as the woman appeared next to her, two cups of coffee in her hands. 

"So, how are you?"

Samus clamed up, the woman muffled a giggle as Samus appeared as a deer in head lights, Samus' heart racing as her mind tried to process the question. A part of Samus felt utterly stupid and just wanted to walk right out. Samus was not the kind of woman to engage in "small talk" or gossip. 

"Not the talking type? It-"

"No! I-" Samus could feel her face heat up as she interrupted the other woman. Samus felt ashamed for interrupting, noting it for later, the woman slightly cocked her head to the side, her chestnut hair bouncing as the loose wavy curls framed her face. "I'm sorry, I'm just not used to talking to people." Samus croaked out, her voice trembled, most people would be surprised to see her like this. 

"It's fine," the other woman shrugged it off, she held out a cup of coffee, which Samus gingerly took in her slim hands. "I am your roommate, Maddie, I am," the woman, Maddie, paused as she thought carefully, "I am nineteen years old..." Maddie trailed off. Samus would have spat out her coffee if she had drank any, Samus herself was almost thirty, twenty-eight to be exact. "I know, I know, I am young to be living by myself," Maddie giggled, Samus letting out a nervous giggle, "I am just happy to have another roommate."

"What happened to the last one?" Samus pressed, somewhat interested, and trying to fit into what a typical conversation she had noticed on her walk to the building.

"She had gotten a new job across the country, but good for her! She wasn't really getting well treated here." Maddie seemed to sadly recount, but the sadness was quickly put off as she walked pass Samus. "Follow me, I'll show you to your room!"

Samus clutched the mug in her hand tightly, she was sure her knuckles were turning a ghostly white while her face was a deep red. She followed Maddie down a cramped hallway. Maddie opening a door to a room on the right, peering in, it had the same warm palette as the rest of the unit. A large bed, possibly a queen size Samus thought to herself, covered in warm yellow blankets. Samus mentally facepalmed as she had only really packed clothing. Maddie walked in, urging Samus to follow.

"Here is your room, I was having a hard time trying to think of what you liked, since your application was quite barren," Samus had noted that women were more into knowing small details about people, a form of intimacy she believed, but she was not the kind of person to just divulge such things. "All is well though, you can change anything in here, move stuff around as you wish, uh," it was Maddie's turn, as she turned a bright red, "I'm afraid I forgot your name, I'm so sorry! I'm a little empty, can you please..." Maddie bashfully twirled her fingers. 

"Oh, uh," Samus' mind raced, she didn't expect being put on the spot, but she went to the default "I'm Samantha." Samus let out a nervous laugh, Maddie lit up and nodded.

"Yes, I remember now, thank you. So, Samantha," Maddie gave another lopsided grin, "I'll let you settle in, you must be tired." Samus agreed, although physically she could run a marathon a hundred times over, but mentally she felt drained. Maddie just turned and almost bounced out of the room, laughing. Samus felt out of place, still holding the mug, she walked over to the nearby desk and placed down the lukewarm cup. Placing her bag by the desk, she wandered over to the bed and flopped down on her stomach, surprised by how soft and fluffy everything was. She had no time to form an opinion about the bed as she had quickly fallen asleep. The first time she had truly slept in a long time.


End file.
